Pastor as Counselor

This very practical book offers no-nonsense instructions for pastorschaplains and ministers whose real specialty is the practice ofrelational wisdom. Patton provides a helpful step-by-step template forpastoral counseling sessions and clear guidelines for understanding whento defer and how to referall while remaining faithful to the basicpastoral calling to connect persons seeking help with the relationshipsand resources they need to deal with their lives. In a societyof specialists John Pattons Pastor as Counselor is a bold reminder ofthe healing potential of ''care-full'' attending to lost and separatedpersons through the unique relational wisdom of the generalist pastor.This is vintage Patton written with gentle wisdom and generous counselsummarizing decades of practicing and teaching pastoralcounseling.Herbert Anderson Emeritus Professor of Pastoral TheologyCatholic Theological Union Chicago IL and Faculty in PracticalTheology Graduate Theological Union Berkeley CA John Pattonwrote this ''how-to'' book for ministers without specialized training inmental health issues. Ministers are good at developing and deepeninghuman relationships and that is exactly what they need in order tobecome skilled short-term pastoral counselors. Concrete down-to-earthand quintessentially practical this is a book that should be on thesyllabus of every seminarys introduction to pastoral care andcounseling. It is the fruit of a lifetime of reflection and embodiedrelational wisdom at its best. Deborah van Deusen Hunsinger CharlotteW. Newcombe Professor of Pastoral Theology Princeton TheologicalSeminary Princeton NJ When it comes to counseling our firstport of call is often the mental health professions. In this book JohnPatton carefully draws out what is special about pastoral counseling.With theological depth and wise practical utility he offers a clearguide for pastoral counselors as to what it is that gives them theiridentity and what that looks like in practice. This is a wise and deeplypractical book that will inevitably be transformative. John SwintonChair in Divinity and Religious Studies; School of Divinity History andPhilosophy; University of Aberdeen; Aberdeen UK John Pattonhas acquired unparalleled wisdom over decades of providing supervisingteaching and writing about pastoral care. This most gifted and deeplyreflective thinker has crafted a primer that will become a classicspelling out whats central for those new to the vocation reminding themore seasoned of what really matters.Chris R. Schlauch AssociateProfessor of Pastoral Psychology and Psychology of Religion BostonUniversity School of Theology Boston MAPatton''s book nicely parallels what he asks pastors to do in counseling others. Through a well-developed structure he offers wise presence spiritual conversation and relational wisdom. His book would be a valuable resource in an advanced pastoral care course in a theological school. Similarly a peer group of pastors would benefit from collective engagement with insights it provides as they assess their pastoral counseling relationships. Kenneth J. McFayden Union Presbyterian Seminary Richmond Va. (Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology 71(4)